PIM Syncing without outlook?

[Guest dom]

Hi,

This may be the most obvious question ever asked and it may well have been answered hundreds of times before, but I'm not really sure what to search for to get the answers.

I've recently switched from a WM 2003 PPC to a WM6 device... this is largely based on my experience with the WM2003 device

1) I write a lot of notes on my devices (using the organiser 'notes' app). Is there any way to get this to sync to my PC without having Outlook (at the moment I don't have anything in place at all). Ideally I'd like to be able to sync it with something either cheaper than outlook, or free. I don't mind changing the app I use for notes on the device, so if there's better note-taking software out there that I can sync to the PC (and ideally use to write notes on the PC to sync with the device too).

2) I like to add inline sketches to my notes on the WM2003 device, but have found that they seem to move around randomly so that they won't stay with the typed text, to I ended up giving up on the sketches... is this any better in WM6 (I haven't actually done any note-taking on it yet as everything is on the old device still (is there any sensible way to transfer between the two devices BTW?)

3) Ideally I'd like to be able to sync the calendar and todo's to the PC too (again without Outlook which would entail buying the whole of MS Office) - I don't have a preferred app for this on the PC at the moment but any recommendations are welcome.

Any help on this would be appreciated (even if you say I'm doomed to have to buy Office! ;))

Thanks!